The North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association offers a system
of tests to measure the versatility of various hunting breeds, including
Brittanys. There are numerous NAVHDA chapters in the United States and
Canada and these regional chapters sponsor four kinds of tests. The
following description is adapted from the NAVHDA website:

The
Natural Ability Test is designed to evaluate the inherent natural abilities
of young dogs and gain insight into their possible usefulness as versatile
gun dogs. It rates seven important inherited abilities: nose, search,
tracking, pointing, water, desire and cooperation.

The Utility Preparatory Test measures the dogs' development midway through
their training toward the Utility Test. The Utility Test evaluates trained
dogs in water and field, before and after the shot, as finished versatile
hunting companions as well as many other specific tasks.

The Invitational Test is the highest level of testing. Only dogs who
have achieved a Prize I in Utility are eligible. This limits the entry
to exceptional animals who have demonstrated a high level of training
and tests their skills in the advanced work.

To be truly meaningful, tests for versatile hunting dogs must meet certain
criteria. They must be conducted in an environment which reflects actual
hunting conditions and situations. They must test the important qualities
of a good versatile dog. Judges must be knowledgeable, consistent and
objective. All testing and evaluation is to be within the context of
judging dogs as useful, productive hunting companions. NAVHDA tests
have been designed with these requirements in mind. In addition, NAVHDA
record keeping provides an accurate, complete performance evaluation
on each dog tested

In order to eliminate direct competition between dogs, entrants in a
NAVHDA test are judged one at a time, by three judges, with their performance
scored against a standard. The only exception to this is the Invitational
Test, in which dogs are braced in the field so each dog can demonstrate
its willingness to back and work effectively with another dog. Prizes
are awarded on the basis of numerical scores achieved in the test. Each
dog that meets or exceeds minimum standards in all areas of work is
placed in one of three categories: Prize I, II or III with Prize I being
the highest classification. If all dogs entered in a NAVHDA test perform
well, all can receive a prize.

NAVHDA
TESTS (The Long Course)

For further information on NAVHDA, to locate chapters, or to find an
event in your area, visit the official NAVHDA website at http://www.navhda.org